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Collin Matiza Sports Editor
THE 2017 South African National Motocross Championship series comes to a head at Terra Topia outside Johannesburg this weekend where one of Zimbabwe’s top junior riders Daiyaan “D” Manuel will be looking at being crowned the 65cc Class Champion. Manuel, a Grade Seven pupil at St. John’s Preparatory School in Harare, is within striking distance of the 65cc Class title as he goes into Saturday’s Grand Finale with 267 points, 10 ahead of his nearest rival, South Africa’s Tyler Tarantino.

And according to Manuel’s father and trainer, Junior, the talented young Zimbabwean rider just needs to finish ahead of Tarantino on Saturday to be crowned champion.

“It’s crunch time for Daiyaan at Terra Topia on Saturday,” Junior explained to The Herald yesterday. He needs to keep the same points gap between himself and Tyler. So, a first place or a second place finish will do the trick for him as long as Tyler finishes behind him at the end of business on Saturday but that’s going to be a really tough fight and Daiyaan can’t wait to give it his all.”

Asked if his son wasn’t feeling under pressure going into Saturday’s race meeting at Terra Topia, Junior Manuel said: “Maybe, I don’t know, because he is also busy writing his Grade Seven exams at the moment, so he’s kind of under some pressure but I think he’ll handle the pressure on Saturday… He is ready to deliver.” Although Daiyaan has raced at Terra Topia before, Junior Manuel said the race organisers in South Africa have changed the track’s set-up and his son will only practise on it on Saturday morning as he is only expected to leave Harare for Johannesburg tomorrow afternoon.

“We would have loved Daiyaan to go to South Africa much earlier but unfortunately he couldn’t because of the exams and he is only going to feel the track on Saturday morning just a few moments before competition starts,” Junior Manuel said. But Daiyaan is intent on delivering some solid results aboard his KTM on Saturday in his quest of lifting his second South African National title in three years after he was crowned the 50cc Champion in 2014.

Apart from competing in the 65cc Class on Saturday, Daiyaan is also likely to race in the 85cc Class. On Saturday, Daiyaan is likely to be joined by fellow young Zimbabwean riders Emmanuel Bako, Davin Cocker, Tristan Grainger and Luke Southon who are expected to ride in different classes at Terra Topia.